A body recently discovered near the Amboy Crater matched the description of a Virginia man who was heading to Palm Springs with his wife, who is still missing, investigators say.

Susan and William Schmeirer were on their way to Palm Springs when their abandoned vehicle was discovered in Amboy. Investigators found a body believed to be William Schmeirer and they're still searching for his wife.(Photo: San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department)

The search for a missing woman in Amboy will resume this week despite rising temperatures that have parts of Southern California under an excessive heat warning.

Authorities will converge near the Amboy Crater National Natural Landmark Saturday to look for Susan Schmeirer. The Virginia woman was last seen there June 2 while on her way to Palm Springs with her husband, William Schmeirer.

The search effort came to an abrupt halt on June 25 because scorching temperatures endangered crews, and officials later targeted July 28 to continue their search.

"The heat may dictate how long they are able to search, but the plan is until noon," said Jodi Miller, spokeswoman for the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department, who added the search is only scheduled to take place Saturday.

The last time search crews were able to comb the area surrounding the Amboy Crater, air temperatures reached 117 degrees with 165-degree ground temperatures.

This week, temperatures are on tap to reach 118 degrees by Wednesday before dropping to 112 degrees on Friday. In the Coachella Valley, temperatures are expected to reach 120 degrees.

"We're talking about extreme temperatures here," said Alex Boothe, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service. "This is the strongest heatwave thus far."

Buy Photo

Amboy is a ghost town that's home to Amboy Crater.(Photo: Lance Gerber/DESERT magazine)

Amboy's extreme heat and rough terrain were blamed for endangering search dogs and damaging all-terrain vehicles during the search effort.

Last month, San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department Spokeswoman Cynthia Bachman said temperatures would need to "drop significantly" before the search could continue. They've only risen since Schmeirer disappeared.

She and her husband began a cross-country trip on May 27 and they were supposed to reach Palm Springs on June 2. Surveillance footage from that day shows the couple was at the crater's visitor center off National Trails Highway in Amboy, a desert community about 50 miles north of Twentynine Palms and 100 miles from Palm Springs.

Temperatures near the Amboy Crater reached 113 degrees when the couple was filmed at the visitor's center.